OLDEST MAN-MADE STRUCTURE FOUND IN GREEK CAVE

The oldest known example of a man-made structure was found within a prehistoric cave in central Greece, according to the Greek culture ministry.

The structure is a stone wall that blocked two-thirds of the entrance to the Theopetra cave near Kalambaka on the north edge of the Thessalian plain. It was constructed 23,000 years ago, probably as a barrier to cold winds.

“An optical dating test, known as Optically Stimulated Luminescence, was applied on quartz grains nested within the stones. We dated four different samples from the sediment and soil materials, and all provided identical dates,” Nikolaos Zacharias, director of the laboratory of archaeometry at the University of Peloponnese, told Discovery News.

According to a statement by the ministry of culture, “the dating matches the coldest period of the most recent ice age, indicating that the cavern’s inhabitants built the stone wall to protect themselves from the cold.”

Excavated since 1987, the Theopetra cave is well known to palaeontologists as it was used and inhabited continuously from the Palaeolithic period onwards (50,000 to 5,000 years ago).

“The newly discovered stone structure is important as it shows the technological level of humans at that time,” Zacharias said.

Source: http://news.discovery.com

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New flying reptile fossils found

Researchers in China and the UK say they have discovered the fossils of a new type of flying reptile that lived more than 160 million years ago.

The find is named Darwinopterus, after famous naturalist Charles Darwin.
Experts say it provides the first clear evidence of a controversial type of evolution called modular evolution.
The 20 new fossils found in north-east China show similarities to both primitive and more advanced pterosaurs, or flying reptiles.
The research is published in the journal, Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

Missing link
Pterosaurs, sometimes called pterodactyls, were flying reptiles that flourished between 65 and 220 million years ago.

Until now, scientists had known about two distinct groups of these creatures - primitive, long-tailed pterosaurs and more advanced short-tailed ones, separated by a huge gap in the fossil record.
But the discovery of more than 20 new fossil skeletons in north-east China could be the missing link in this evolutionary chain.

Darwinopterus is a hawk-like reptile with a head and neck just like advanced pterosaurs - but the rest of the skeleton is similar to more primitive forms.
Researchers say that this could be evidence of what they call modular evolution - where natural selection forces a whole series of traits to change rapidly rather than just one.
With its long jaws and rows of sharp-pointed teeth, these creatures were very well suited to catching and killing other flying species.
The fossils were found in rocks that are 160 million years old, making them 10 million years older than the first bird, Archaeopteryx.

Source: here 

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